Meeting with top regional Forest Service and BLM officials on new stimulus funds highlights slate of public meetings and events
 
February 12, 2009 - WASHINGTON, DC - After completing his 361st round trip between Oregon and Washington, D.C., Rep. Greg Walden will begin a weeklong visit through the vast Second District with meetings and public events in southern Oregon.
Highlighting the schedule is a meeting at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 18 with Region 6 Forest Service Supervisor Mary Wagner (who oversees forest service land in Oregon and Washington) and state BLM Director Ed Sheppard to learn the agencies’ plans to begin forest health projects with the funds they are expected to receive in the federal stimulus package that the House expects to vote on tomorrow. Any stimulus package should aim to create jobs quickly, so Rep. Walden is interested to hear about how they plan to get Oregonians back working in the woods quickly with the new funds.

But the stimulus package—taken as a whole—spends more than is needed to achieve the goal of creating jobs; Rep. Walden supports a plan that creates twice as many jobs nationwide at half the cost. For Oregon, that would mean 78,000 new jobs, as opposed to only 46,000 expected from the pending plan crafted in secret behind closed doors. The plan supported by Rep. Walden would have delivered meaningful tax relief to small businesses so they could afford to higher new employees, and it would put more money back in the pockets of American families.

Unfortunately, the version expected to pass tomorrow goes the wrong direction in terms of job creation and tax relief by spending too much of the taxpayers’ hard-earned money on projects that have little to do with economic growth. For example, the latest news reports indicate that $6 billion was added at the last minute of the closed-door negotiations for a high-speed train from Los Angeles to Las Vegas. Talk about railroading the taxpayer. There’s $1 billion for the census. How is that economic stimulus?

Despite Rep. Walden’s opposition to a plan that includes so much non-stimulative spending, as a longtime support of increased restoration of Oregon’s forests, he will want to know what kind of “shovel ready” projects the Forest Service and BLM plan to pursue with taxpayers’ hard-earned money.

The meeting will be held at the Medford BLM/USFS office at 3040 Biddle Road in Medford. Supervisor Wagner will appear via videoconference from Portland; Director Sheppard will appear via videoconference from Burns.

The meeting will be open to press only.

After his trip through southern Oregon on Tuesday and Wednesday, Rep. Walden will be in Umatilla and Union counties on Thursday, and Deschutes, Jefferson, and Crook counties on Friday.

In the nation’s capital, Rep. Walden is working numerous fronts to get Oregonians back to work in the woods and improve forest health at the same time.

Rep. Walden has joined North Dakota Democrat Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin to lead an effort to allow biofuels generated from federal lands—from sources like small trees and brush—to count towards the renewable fuels requirements.
Rep. Walden is working on legislation to guarantee local biomass producers a long-term supply from federal forests. This helps the fledgling industry obtain investment, but also helps the forest out too. The more work Oregonians can do in the forest, the more jobs are created, and the less catastrophic wildfire occurs.
These efforts, coupled with Rep. Walden’s bipartisan Healthy Forest Restoration Act II (HFRA II), will provide the necessary tools to proper stewardship of our federal forests and put people back to work in the woods. HFRA II would give federal forest managers the tools they need to actively manage our forests to reduce catastrophic fire and improve forest health.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2009

KLAMATH COUNTY

7 a.m.
Klamath Basin Sunrise Rotary
Elmer’s Restaurant, 3030 S. 6th St., Klamath Falls

Rep. Walden will deliver a congressional update focused on the economy and the bipartisan projects he is pursuing in the nation’s capital. Following the update he will also conduct a question and answer session.
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9 a.m.
Meeting with Klamath County commissioners
Klamath County Government Center, Room 213

Rep. Walden will be updated on concerns to the county and also deliver an update on federal developments that might affect the county.
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10:30 a.m.
Meeting with Col. Jim Miller
Kinglsey Field, 222 Arnold, Suite 11

Rep. Walden will meet with Col. Miller to receive an update on the 173rd Fighter Wing and Kingsley Field.
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Noon
Meeting with Team Klamath
OIT Student Union, 3210 Campus Dr.

Rep. Walden will meet with county, city, university, and business leaders to discuss the unique economic challenges facing the local community. Rep. Walden will also offer a brief congressional update.

JACKSON COUNTY

3:30 p.m.
Visit to Knife River Corp.
3959 Hamrick Road, Central Point

Following a tour of the facility, Rep. Walden will participate in an informal roundtable discussion with company managers and department heads to discuss the current state of their company, which employs 600 people in Jackson County. Knife River is one of the leading sand and gravel mining companies in southern Oregon.

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2009

JACKSON COUNTY

7 a.m.
North Medford Rotary
Rogue Regency, 2300 Biddle Road, Medford

Rep. Walden will deliver a congressional update focused on the economy and the bipartisan projects he is pursuing in the nation’s capital. Following the update he will also conduct a question and answer session.
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8:30 a.m.
Meeting to discuss forest stimulus projects
Medford BLM/USFS office, 3040 Biddle Road, Medford

Rep. Walden will meet with USFS Region 6 Supervisor Mary Wagner and state BLM Director Ed Sheppard to hear their plans for creating jobs in the woods in southern Oregon with money that is expected to be in the stimulus package for forest restoration projects. Supervisor Wagner will appear via videoconference from Portland; Director Sheppard will appear via videoconference from Burns.

JOSEPHINE COUNTY

Noon
Grants Pass Rotary
Wild River Pub
533 NE F St., Grants Pass

Rep. Walden will deliver a congressional update focused on the economy and the bipartisan projects he is pursuing in the nation’s capital. Following the update he will also conduct a question and answer session.

Representative Greg Walden represents the Oregon’s Second Congressional District, which is comprised of 20 counties in eastern, southern, and central Oregon. He is a member of the Committee on Energy and Commerce and the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.